Chapter 1

My name is Alexander Quinn, and in my girlfriend Sophia Gale's eyes, I was probably just some rich trust fund kid—loaded with cash, short on brains, and way too lovesick to see what was right in front of me.

She swiped my credit card without a second thought and lived in my villa rent-free, all while hanging out with her "guy friends," staying up all night talking and getting cozy like I didn't exist.

Her sister Emily Gale always said the same thing. "Lex, you're so understanding. Sophie's just friendly, that's all. She has lots of friends."

I never argued. I just watched.

I watched them treat everything I gave them like it was their given right, like they deserved every bit of it.

That went on until Sophia used my card to buy her "best guy friend" Ryan Lewis a Porsche and paid for the whole thing in cash.

That was when I smiled.

I wasn't stupid. I was just waiting for the perfect moment to take back everything I'd given them and teach them a simple lesson. Every gift from fate came with a price tag attached, and now it was time for them to pay up.

This wasn't revenge. This was settling accounts.

*****

My name was Alexander, and my girlfriend's name was Sophia.

She sat across from me that day, taking small bites of her tiramisu while the lighting hit her face just right and made her look flawless.

"Lex, my birthday's next week," she said, tilting her head with that sweet voice of hers. "What are you getting me?"

People around us were watching, and I could tell what they were thinking. I looked handsome and she looked pretty. We were a perfect match.

I set down my fork.

"What do you want?"

"Well..." She drew out the word, and her eyes were practically sparkling. "You know Ryan, right? My best guy friend? He's been eyeing this watch lately, and I think it's around 70 thousand dollars."

She paused and watched my face carefully.

"I want to buy it for him, you know, as a symbol of our friendship."

Then she quickly added, "Of course, I'll use my own money. I just wanted to let you know."

I looked at her.

Her "own money" was the 150 thousand dollars I deposited into her account every single month as spending money.

I didn't say anything.

Sophia was getting nervous. She reached across the table and placed her hand on top of mine.

Her hand was soft and still smelled like the lotion she'd just put on.

"Lex, don't overthink it. Ryan and I are really just friends. We've known each other for ten years, and he's like a brother to me. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have even gotten into college."

Here we go again.

I'd heard this exact speech at least eight hundred times, and it was always the same—Ryan this, Ryan that.

That name was like a splinter that kept working its way to the surface.

When we were having dinner, Sophia would get calls from Ryan and talk for half an hour straight.

When we were watching movies, Ryan would text saying he'd just gone through a breakup and was feeling down, and Sophia would immediately jump up and say she needed to go keep him company.

My garage had a dozen supercars sitting in it, but Sophia kept riding around in Ryan's beat-up five-year-old car instead.

She said, "Lex, don't get the wrong idea. Ryan's just worried it's not safe for me to take cabs by myself."

Her sister Emily was always right there backing her up too.

"That's right, Lex. You're so busy with your business empire, and Sophie doesn't want to bother you, so having Ryan look after her gives us peace of mind.

"Sophie's just the sentimental type, and you need to understand that."

I understood. I understood perfectly.

I understood so well that every time Sophia's phone lit up with Ryan's name on the screen, my fingers would curl up without me even thinking about it.

Today, that splinter was poking through again, and this time she wanted me to drop 70 thousand dollars on a watch for her so-called "best friend."

I pulled my hand back.

The restaurant's air conditioning was running a bit too cold.

"It's your money. Spend it however you want."

My tone came out flat and neutral.

Sophia's relief was obvious, and the smile spread back across her face.

"I knew you'd be cool about it, Lex!"

She picked up her spoon, scooped up a huge bite of cake, and held it up to my mouth.

"Say ahh—"

I didn't open my mouth. The atmosphere got awkward fast.

Sophia's hand froze in mid-air.

"If there's not enough money in the account, let me know."

I looked straight into her eyes and said it slowly, one word at a time.

She blinked, then pulled the spoon back and ate the cake herself.

"There's plenty. How could what you give me not be enough?"

Her laugh sounded a little forced.

The rest of that meal was pretty pointless.

On the drive home, Sophia was glued to her phone the whole time.

I knew exactly what she was doing. She was texting Ryan and probably bragging about how she'd soon be buying him that expensive watch.

I kept my eyes on the road ahead and watched the flow of traffic.

Red light, green light, over and over again. Just like the constant push and pull between her and me.

I'd spoiled her rotten and turned her into a princess, and she took all that love I gave her and handed it out to other men.

Plenty of people told me I was an idiot and said I was Sophia's ultimate doormat.

Even my childhood friends had tried to talk sense into me and said that Sophia was a bottomless pit, that she was way too skilled at playing games, and that she had me wrapped around her finger.

I always just smiled and never bothered explaining myself.

A frog sitting in warm water felt comfortable, and it had no idea it was about to die until the water started boiling.

I wasn't the frog.

I was the one heating up the water.

I was waiting and biding my time, waiting for the temperature to reach its peak, waiting for her to jump into that scalding pot all by herself.

Well, from what it seemed, the timing was just about right.